'Net Features : Whole Foodshttp://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/tags/Whole+Foods/default.aspxTags: Whole FoodsenCommunityServer 2008 SP2 (Build: 31104.93)When Is Being Ethical Ridiculous?http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2014/03/09/when-is-being-ethical-ridiculous.aspxSun, 09 Mar 2014 14:00:00 GMT1e469e21-c924-44fa-a132-47b5d0a8ad47:31801Administrator0http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/rsscomments.aspx?PostID=31801http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2014/03/09/when-is-being-ethical-ridiculous.aspx#comments<p>:: By Ilan Nass, <a href="http://fueled.com/" target="_blank">Fueled</a> ::</p>
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<p>We live in a world where companies are trying to be politically correct and ethical to avoid lawsuits and disgruntled employees. While this is beneficial in many cases, sometimes being too ethical can cause problems for a growing company. While it is important to run businesses as ethically as possible, if doing so gets in the way of profitability, your company may want to look at ways to start making money as opposed to worrying entirely about what is ethical. At the end of the day, companies must make money or they will have to close their operations. Below are some examples, carefully chosen by Fueled, of companies that may have taken &ldquo;being ethical&rdquo; a little too far.</p>
<h3>Costco&rsquo;s Profit Margins</h3>
<p>Costco has grown its revenue by more than 100 percent over the past 10 years. While this is good news for the company, this is largely because of the company&rsquo;s extremely slim profit margins. According to a Motley Fool article, Costco had an average profit margin of 1.66 percent between 2009-2013, which shows that Costco&rsquo;s strategy is to grow their business while keeping their profits extremely low. To compare to other large retailers, Walmart&rsquo;s average profit margin was 3.52 percent and Target&rsquo;s was 3.96 percent over the same time period. There is some question as to whether Costco will be able to continue to grow at the same rate over the next decade with profit margins so small. Costco&rsquo;s position has always been that they are focused on being ethical through offering extremely low prices on all of their products. They claim to never markup any product more than 14 percent. Only time will tell if this ethical position will pay off in the long run.</p>
<h3>Failure of Green Subsidy Companies</h3>
<p>Under President Obama&rsquo;s stimulus program, a large number of companies that were designated as &ldquo;green companies&rdquo; received huge subsidies through a $90 billion government program. The problem is that many of these companies are no longer in business. They were focused on green initiatives, but obviously not focused enough on making money. The most well-known green failure was Solyndra that received more than $500 million in government funds to only later go bankrupt. Many taxpayers are asking if the government went too far by providing assistance to ethical green companies that in the end, &ldquo;took the money and ran&rdquo;. &nbsp;</p>
<h3>Forsaking Profits by Only Using Organic Products</h3>
<p>Unfortunately, organic ingredients are extremely expensive. Therefore, companies that require that all of their ingredients be considered organic or fair trade can get themselves into trouble. Many companies that have a reputation for being pro-organic actually may not be as squeaky clean as you would think. Whole Foods for instance, manufactures much of it&rsquo;s food in China where organic food is largely unregulated. This begs the question as to whether all of their products are as organic as they claim.&nbsp;</p>
<p>There is no doubt that business ethics are beneficial, but when they cause companies to become less profitable and even shutter operations, the question remains: are companies being too ethical? At a glance it seems there is a happy medium between ethics and profits, we just need to find it.</p>
<hr />
<p>Ilan Nass is the head of marketing at <a href="http://fueled.com/" target="_blank">Fueled</a>, the leading iPhone app builder in New York City, renowned for its award winning mobile design and strategy.</p>
<div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/aggbug.aspx?PostID=31801" width="1" height="1">movers and shakerswmfeatureWhole FoodsCostcoIlan NassFueled12 Effective Corporate Blog Designshttp://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2013/03/14/12-effective-corporate-blog-designs.aspxThu, 14 Mar 2013 19:35:00 GMT1e469e21-c924-44fa-a132-47b5d0a8ad47:23800Michael Garrity14http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/rsscomments.aspx?PostID=23800http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2013/03/14/12-effective-corporate-blog-designs.aspx#comments<hr />
<p><strong>In the age of likes, retweets and shares, content marketing has suddenly become the best way to spread the word about your brand to bring in new customers and rack up conversions. </strong><br /><br />However, since social media has its limitations, in terms of both branding and the type of content that companies can offer, many businesses have taken to blogging to provide insightful and valuable information to their customers, while also producing likeable and sharable content that can benefit their SEO efforts. </p>
<p>Look, plenty has already been written about how blogs can <a target="_blank" href="http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2012/09/07/blogging-for-success-weekend-warrior.aspx">improve a brand&rsquo;s content marketing campaigns</a> or <a target="_blank" href="http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2010/04/20/want-more-leads-write-more-blog-posts.aspx">increase leads</a>, but we&rsquo;re here to be a little more superficial than that. While content is undoubtedly and absolutely the most important aspect of a valuable, successful blog, it&rsquo;s not the only thing that matters. After all, we&rsquo;ve all heard about the effect that a good (or bad) first impression can have on new consumers. That&rsquo;s why all of that great content on your blog should look nice, as well.<br /><br />If you&rsquo;re in need of some inspiration, we&rsquo;ve compiled this list of 12 of the most effective corporate blog designs on the Web. Each of them takes a different approach; some are design-heavy and visually striking (e.g. Whole Foods, Southwest), while others take a simpler, less bold approach that is more in line with what the brand offers (e.g. LinkedIn, Bigelow Tea).</p>
<p>Which designs are your favorites? Let us know in the comments section, or share some other great corporate blogs that you know about!<strong></strong></p>
<p><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.bigelowteablog.com/">Bigelow Tea Blog</a></strong><br /><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/blogelow.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="625" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://blog.linkedin.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://blog.linkedin.com/">The Official LinkedIn Blog</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/linkedblog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="635" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.seventhgeneration.com/learn/blog"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.seventhgeneration.com/learn/blog">7Gen Blog by Seventh Generation</a></strong><br /><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/7genblog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="450" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://ebayinkblog.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://ebayinkblog.com/">eBay inc. Ink</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/eblog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="650" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/">Disney Parks Blog</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/disney-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="625" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story">Whole Story by Whole Foods</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/whole-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="440" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.thecleanestline.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.thecleanestline.com/">The Cleanest Line by Patagonia</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/patagonia.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="909" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.blogsouthwest.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.blogsouthwest.com/">Nuts About Southwest</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/southwest-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="450" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="https://blog.dropbox.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="https://blog.dropbox.com/">The Dropbox Blog</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/dropblog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="500" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/">All Songs Considered by NPR</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/all-songs-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="425" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://blog.toms.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://blog.toms.com/">TOMS</a></strong><br /><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/toms-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="650" alt="" /><strong><br /><a target="_blank" href="http://icecreamjournal.turkeyhill.com/"></a></strong></p>
<p><strong><a target="_blank" href="http://icecreamjournal.turkeyhill.com/">Ice Cream Journal by Turkey Hill Dairy</a></strong></p>
<p><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/images/blog/ice-cream-blog.jpg" style="vertical-align:middle;border:1px solid black;margin:10px;" width="650" height="465" alt="" /></p>
<div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/aggbug.aspx?PostID=23800" width="1" height="1">ebaybloggingblogslinkedinthemestumblrdesign and developmentDropboxwmfeaturewm-designdevWhole FoodsDisneynprtomspatagoniablog designtemplatessouthwest airlinesseventh generationbigelow teaPolitical Campaigns & Digital Marketing: Did They Miss the Mark?http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2012/11/05/political-campaigns-amp-digital-marketing-did-they-miss-the-mark.aspxMon, 05 Nov 2012 17:30:00 GMT1e469e21-c924-44fa-a132-47b5d0a8ad47:21923Administrator0http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/rsscomments.aspx?PostID=21923http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2012/11/05/political-campaigns-amp-digital-marketing-did-they-miss-the-mark.aspx#comments<p><span style="font-weight:bold;">We all know how online marketing and social media can be a goldmine of potential consumers.</span></p>
<p>Brands like Whole Foods Market and Samsung have succeeded on Twitter with as many as 3 million followers each. Coke triumphs over Pepsi on YouTube with about 108 million views and 83,700 subscribers. Among media brands, Disney dominates with nearly 38,700,000 Facebook fans. In 2011, Netflix&rsquo;s display advertising received 36.9 billion ad impressions and was cited as one of the top 10 display advertisers in the United States.&nbsp;</p>
<p>But when you look at political spending, campaigns are still spending more on traditional media platforms than online. Consumer brands are learning how to harness online and social media, but political marketers can take a lesson from those finding success with digital marketing. Online and social media is an advantageous investment if political campaigns wisely use online channels, especially their analytics tools.&nbsp;</p>
<p>But if online and social media are so powerful then why are the presidential candidates and Super PACs not investing more into online advertising? Why are campaigns and Super PACs less interested in social media than offline?&nbsp;</p>
<p>Traditional media is still the force in political spending. True, online spending is six times higher for this year&rsquo;s election than it was in 2008, but for political advertising, TV is the main medium&mdash;approximately $7.3 billion dollars for broadcast TV, cable and radio versus $159 million for online, according to Borrell Associates. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Historically, political campaigners had two rivals in the final stretch on an election: a Democrat versus Republican, and those two camps spent money on their campaigns. Now, Super PACs have flooded the ad market, driving up the competition and the inventory price within paid search advertising. For instance, if there are only two people bidding on keywords, there&rsquo;s a limited competition with keyword bidding. However, if you have 10 people bidding on the same keywords, it drives up the price of inventory and increases the cost-per-click. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Obama advisor, David Axelrod, may have put it best when he said that local TV is &ldquo;still the nuclear weapon&rdquo; within an election. This doesn&rsquo;t mean, however, that political marketers are not concerned about the digital battleground. One of the biggest wins is the investment by the Obama campaign in its social and online media. By numbers alone, Obama leads in many fronts on the digital battleground&mdash;from Twitter, online display ads and paid search marketing. But you need more than mere numbers to be successful. Candidates, like consumer brands, can better leverage online and social media to keep and win supporters.</p>
<p><b>First, test, track and analyze your political messaging in the digital space.</b> For instance, let&rsquo;s say you have a rally in the battleground state of Ohio and
want to ensure high voter turnout. Social and online marketing are useful to
engage and motivate your base, as well as communicating with your base quickly
and in real-time. As you gather your online following, you can test and track
which messages resonate with those people before creating a costly TV ad or
making a speech. That&rsquo;s a competitive strategy that marketers can use before
going to market.</p>
<p><b>Second, marketers should invest marketing dollars into online display ads to target undecided voters.</b> Marketing is not solely about the size of your budget but who&rsquo;s going to spend their budget more intelligently. Display advertising or banner ads can be the tipping point because of its granular level of targeting. Within this channel, you can find such information like demographics, geography, and user behavior, making display ads far superior than TV and allowing marketers to gain more precise and targeted reach.</p>
<p><b>Third, think like your competitor both online and offline.</b> Some people believe that &ldquo;big data&rdquo; can solve many marketing problems but that&rsquo;s a misconception. Like any amount of information, you need to gather, organize and properly analyze it. You need the attention to detail and objectivity to find any missed opportunities or big wins &ndash; for you and your competitor. By investing more resources into data analytics tools (Google Analytics and Adobe SiteCatalyst), you have greater insight into the effectiveness of your online advertising than with other medium, such as how many donations are you receiving from a banner ad versus a paid search campaign.&nbsp;</p>
<p>To sum it up, it might not be that political campaigns are less interested in digital marketing. They also need to consider if they are investing their ad dollars where it counts&mdash;through quality analytics.</p>
<p><b>About the Author:</b> Jon Morris is the founder and CEO of <a href="http://www.riseinteractive.com" target="_blank">Rise Interactive</a>, a digital marketing agency in Chicago, specializing in digital media and web analytics.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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